AI-Linked Stocks Slide After Leaders Urge Slowdown

AI-related stocks fell sharply across Asia, Europe and U.S. futures after Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei urged the industry to slow development of increasingly capable models over concerns about misuse, loss of control and threats to humanity. OpenAI CEO Sam Altman, Google DeepMind chief Demis Hassabis and xAI chief Elon Musk supported calls for greater caution and independent safety evaluations, while some experts disputed the severity of the risks and President Donald Trump opposed slowing development. SoftBank fell roughly 10% to 13% in Japan, while chipmakers including SK Hynix, Samsung Electronics, Nvidia, ASML and Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. also declined. Investors are reassessing whether massive spending on chips, data centers and other AI infrastructure can continue if regulation, voluntary restraints or slower model development reduce expansion. The sell-off followed heightened warnings from AI researchers and an Anthropic report describing the use of its models in cyber operations, surveillance, fraud and weapons development.